Apparatus to drive various fastening means

ABSTRACT

This apparatus has means for driving fastening means such as staples, nails and/or pins. It has a guide channel arranged to guide the drive plunger and also staples, nails or pins. The magazine rail has a pusher slidable thereon and arranged to urge staples, nails or pins to the guide channel.

United States Patent Inventor Appl. No.

Filed Patented Assignee Priority Gunther Ploen Kaltenkirehen Holstein,Germany 9,890

Feb. 9, 1970 Jan. 1 1, 1972 Job. Freidrich Behrens Ahrensburg, GermanyFeb. 18, 1969 Germany APPARATUS TO DRIVE VARIOUS FASTENING MEANS 9Claims, 11 Drawing Figs.

U.S. CI

Int. Cl

227/109, 227/ I 20 B25c 5/06 [50] Field of Search 227/98, 109, 120, 130

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,618,778 11/1952 Granfield227/109 X 2,716,749 9/1955 Timmerbeil 227/109 3,022,509 2/1962 DeMan227/109 3,037,207 6/1962 Pazan 227/109 Primary Examiner-Granville Y.Custer, Jr. Attorney-.1. B. Felshin ABSTRACT: This apparatus has meansfor driving fastening means such as staples, nails and/or pins. It has aguide channel arranged to guide the drive plunger and also staples,nails or pins. The magazine rail has a pusher slidable thereon andarranged to urge staples, nails or pins to the guide channel.

PATENTEU N 1 l9?! SHEET 2 [IF 2 INVENTOR. GUNTHER PL OE'N ATToe/vyAPPARATUS TO DRIVE VARIOUS FASTENING MEANS The invention relates to anapparatus to drive various fastening means such as staples of variousback widths, nails, pins or the like, into materials of various types.

Drive apparatuses are in general operated by compressed air. Butapparatuses are also commercially available in which the drive stem isdriven by means of an electromagnet. With smaller apparatuses, amanually tensioned compression spring is provided as a drive means.

Independently of the type of drive, the apparatus comprise a magazinefor the fastening means, in which the latter are guided while disposedin series arrangement. The magazine encloses a rail which guides thefastening means and a springbiased pusher which rests on the guide rail,pressing the fastening means into the guide channel of the driveplunger; after actuation of the release trigger, plunger drives thefastening means into the workpiece.

All known types of drive apparatuses are designed for the accommodationof only one fastening means. With said one apparatus it is possible todrive nails with like heads and like shaft widths but of differentlengths, or with another apparatus it is possible to drive staples oflike back widths and different wire gauges but of different lengths, itis true. But it is not possible to drive nails and staples with one andthe same apparatus.

It is the object of the present invention to provide a drive apparatusby means of which various types of fastening means may be driven intoworkpieces, without the magazine and/or the parts of the apparatusforming the drive channel having to be exchanged, but with only theother type of fastening means having to be placed into the magazine.

To solve the problem, the saddle-shaped guide rail, in accordance withthe invention, is provided with a recess and the pusher is designed inthe shape of a double-U, so that both staples of major back-widthgripping around the guide rail and nails and pins guided in the centerrecess, may be driven. In order to be able to safely guide the pins andnails, the side of the guide or drive channel, respectively, is providedwith various guiding grooves. The recess in the saddle, the inner web ofthe pusher, and the guiding grooves may be centrally as well asunilaterally offset, such offset arrangement facilitating the insertionof the pins or nails. To secure the pins in the recess of the guide railagainst upward displacement, a resilient contact pressure device isprovided in the recess, engaging the nail and pin shafts.

Drive apparatuses are working according to the top or bottom chargingprinciple. The idea of the invention may be realized with both types ofapparatus, in which connection it must be taken into consideration thatnails having distinct heads cannot be driven with an apparatus workingin accordance with a bottom charging principle.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 shows a fragmentary sectional view of a compressed air-operateddrive apparatus,

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the stem guiding canal and the guiderail according to the invention,

FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional view taken in the direction of the arrowsA-A of a known guide rail with pusher,

FIG. 3a shows a cross-sectional view similar to that of FIG. 3 taken ofa guide rail in accordance with the invention,

FIG. 4 shows a staple and a bar of staples,

FIG. 5 shows a nail and a bar of nails,

FIG. 6 shows a pin and a bar of pins,

FIG. 7 shows a sectional view taken of a magazine filled with broadstaples, and the drive channel in the direction of the arrows B-B,

FIG. 8 shows a sectional view similar to that of FIG. 7 with nailsaccording to FIG. 5,

FIG. 9 shows a sectional view as in FIG. 7 with pins according to FIG.6; and

FIG. 10 is a horizontal cross-sectional view showing the plunger in thedrive channel.

FIG. 1 shows a drive apparatus in accordance with the invention. A space3 above the piston 4 is communicating with a compressed air containerthrough a supply line 1 and a valve arrangement (not shown) actuated bya trigger 2. A drive plunger 5 is fastened at the underside of thepiston which is guided through an insert 6. Two recesses 7a and 8aextending in the drive direction in two end plates 7 and 8 define thestem guiding and shooting canal, respectively, into which channel,fastening means may enter sideways. A saddle-shaped guide rail 10 isarranged on a bottom plate 9, said guide rail projecting into a recess8b of the end plate 8 as far as the plane of the recess 8a defining thedrive channel. A staple pusher l2 biased by a torsion spring 11 engagesthe bar of fastening means guided by the rail, pressing it in adirection towards the drive channel. The torsion spring 11 is arrangedon a shaft 13 which is connected with the apparatus housing.

In contrast to the known saddle-shaped guide rails (FIG. 3a) which wereadapted to guide only staples of like back widths, the guide rail 10according to the invention (FIG. 2) which is capable of accommodatingboth staple bars 14 (FIG. 4) of different shaft lengths and bars ofnails 15 (FIG. 5) or bars of pins 16 (FIG. 6), is provided with a slot17 (FIGS. 2 and 3). The pusher 12 in the form of a double-U comprisestwo outer flanges 12a, a web 12b and an inner flange the flanges 12aengage around the guide rail 10, the web 12b rests on the rail, and theinner flange 12c engages within the guide rail slot or recess 17. In thedescribed embodiment, the recess 17 is arranged in the center of theguide rail 10 and, therefore, the inner flange 12c is fastened on thecenter of the web 12b.

The outer flanges 12a and the web 12b of the shoe l2 cooperate with thelegs 14a and the back 14b of the broader staples 14; the web 12b and theinner flange 12c cooperate with the transverse web 15b and the shank 15aof the T- shaped nail 15, and the inner flange 12c cooperates with thepin 16.

The recess 8a with the rectangular cross-sectional area is designed insuch a manner that it guides the stem and has dimensions correspondingto the dimensions of the staple back 14b with slight clearance in widthand length (FIG. 4). The recess 7a is likewise rectangular with thelength and width being smaller than that of the recess 8a. In thelongitudinal groove 7a extending through the end plate, the head 15b ofthe individual nail of the bar of nails (FIG. 8) is guides. The endplate 7 comprises a second longitudinal groove 7b inside the recess 7awith a cross section area in the form of a triangle of equal legs, withthe base of the triangle lying in the limiting plane of the recess 7aand the peak of the recess 7b disposed opposite the inner web 12c of thepusher 12. The opening angle of the groove is selected to be such thatthe foremost pin 16 having a circular cross-sectional area is safelyguided in the groove 7b (FIG. 9). The shaft 15a the nail 15 isadditionally guided in the groove 7b. The plates 7 and 8 areinterconnected with each other by means of screws 18, for example. Therecess 7b may also be designed to have a semicircular shape.

In order to be able to process also pins of different lengths,displacement of the pins within the recess must be avoided, A recess 19with rectangular cross-sectional area is provided in the one side wallof the slot or recess 17, with some bores 20 arranged verticallythereof. Springs 21 are seated in the bores 20, with a strip or plate 22supported with play in the recess 19 fastened thereat. The strip pressesthe strip of pins 16 against the opposite wall of the slot or recess 17,thus preventing displacement of the strip upwardly in the recess whenhandling the apparatus.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus to drive fastening means such as staples, nails, pins orthe like, comprising a drive plunger, structural means to define aguiding channel for said fastening means and for said plunger, and amagazine to accommodate the fastening means, said magazine comprising aguide rail leading to said channel for guiding fastening means on saidrail, to said channel, spring-biased pusher means on said rail to urgefastening means on the rail in a direction toward the said guidingchannel, said guide rail being formed with a longitudinally extendinginner slot intermediate the sides of the rail, for the accommodation ofshanks of nails and/or pins adapted to be urged toward said channel bysaid pusher means, said pusher means comprising a pusher slidable on therail and having a pair of outer flanges disposed at opposite sides ofthe rail, a top web interconnecting said pair of flanges and disposed atthe top of the rail, and an inner flange extending from said top web inparallel relation to said outer flanges, and being disposed within saidslot, and means disposed at one surface of said longitudinally extendinginner slot to exert resilient contact pressure on drive pins or onshanks of drive nails passing through said inner slot of said rail.

2. Apparatus to drive fastening means such as staples, nails, pins orthe like, comprising a drive plunger, structural means to define aguiding channel for said fastening means and for said plunger, and amagazine to accommodate the fastening means, said magazine comprising aguide rail leading to said channel for guiding fastening means on saidrail to said channel, spring-biased pusher means on said rail to urgefastening means on the rail in a direction toward the said guidingchannel, said guide rail being formed with a longitudinally extendinginner slot intermediate the sides of the rail, for the'accommodation ofshanks of nails and/or pins adapted to be urged toward said channel bysaid pusher means, said structural means defining said guide channel,comprising two end plates, means to interconnect said plates, one saidend plates being provided with a recess of a width corresponding to thewidth of the plunger, and extending in the drive direction of theplunger, the other end plate being provided with a recess having a widthless than the width of the plunger and centered with respect to therecess in the first plate, to accommodate heads of nails to be driven.

3. The combination of claim 2, said other plate having a groove in asurface of the recess thereof, to guide pins to be driven in.

4. The combination of claim 3, said groove having a crosssectional areain the form of a triangle of equal legs, the apex of said groove beingdisposed opposite said inner slot and the base of the triangle beingdisposed in the plane of said surface of the recess of said other plate.

5. The combination of claim 1, said last-mentioned means comprising aplate disposed in a recess in said one surface of said inner slot, andspring means in said rail to press said plate against said pins orshanks.

6. The combination of claim 2, and means disposed at one surface of saidlongitudinally extending inner slot to exert resilient contact pressureon drive pins or on shanks of drivein nails passing through said innerslot of said rail.

7. The combination of claim 3, and means disposed at one surface of saidlongitudinally extending inner slot to exert resilient contact pressureon drive pins or on shanks of drivein nails passing through said innerslot ofsaid rail.

8. Apparatus to drive fastening means such as staples, nails, pins orthe like, comprising a drive plunger structural means to define aguiding channel for said fastening means and for said plunger, and amagazine to accommodate the fastening means, said magazine comprising aguide rail leading to said channel for guiding fastening means on saidrail, to said channel, spring-biased pusher means on said rail to urgefastening means on the rail in a direction toward the said guidingchannel, said guide rail being formed with a longitudinally extendinginner slot intermediate the sides of the rail, for the accommodation ofshanks of nails and/or pins adapted to be urged toward said channel bysaid pusher means, said guide channel comprising a first recess on oneside of the channel, of a width corresponding to the width of theplunger and extending in the drive direction of the plunger, and asecond recess on the other side of the channel ofa width less than thewidth of said plunger and centered with respect to said first recess andextending therefrom, to accommodate heads of nails to be driven.

9. The combination of claim 8, said channel further comprising a groove,centered with respect to said second recess,

to guide pins to be driven.

1. Apparatus to drive fastening means such as staples, nails, pins orthe like, comprising a drive plunger, structural means to define aguiding channel for said fastening means and for said plunger, and amagazine to accommodate the fastening means, said magazine comprising aguide rail leading to said channel for guiding fastening means on saidrail, to said channel, springbiased pusher means on said rail to urgefastening means on the rail in a direction toward the said guidingchannel, said guide rail being formed with a longitudinally extendinginner slot intermediate the sides of the rail, for the accommodation ofshanks of nails and/or pins adapted to be urged toward said channel bysaid pusher means, said pusher means comprising a pusher slidable on therail and having a pair of outer flanges disposed at opposite sides ofthe rail, a top web interconnecting said pair of flanges and disposed atthe top of the rail, and an inner flange extending from said top web inparallel relation to said outer flanges, and being disposed within saidslot, and means disposed at one surface of said longitudinally extendinginner slot to exert resilient contact pressure on drive pins or onshanks of drive nails passing through said inner slot of said rail. 2.Apparatus to drive fastening means such as staples, nails, pins or thelike, comprising a drive plunger, structural means to define a guidingchannel for said fastening means and for said plunger, and a magazine toaccommodate the fastening means, said magazine comprising a guide railleading to said channel for guiding fastening means on said rail to saidchannel, spring-biased pusher means on said rail to urge fastening meanson the rail in a direction toward the said guiding channel, said guiderail being formed with a longitudinally extending inner slotintermediate the sides of the rail, for the accommodation of shanks ofnails and/or pins adapted to be urged toward said channel by said pushermeans, said structural means defining said guide channel, comprising twoend plates, means to interconnect said plates, one said end plates beingprovided with a recess of a width corresponding to the width of theplunger, and extending in the drive direction of the plunger, the otherend plate being provided with a recess having a width less than thewidth of the plunger and centered with respect to the recess in thefirst plate, to accommodate heads of nails to be driven.
 3. Thecombination of claim 2, said other plate having a groove in a surface ofthe recess thereof, to guide pins to be driven in.
 4. The combination ofclaim 3, said groove having a cross-sectional area in the form of atriangle of equal legs, the apex of said groove being disposed oppositesaid inner slot and the base of the triangle being disposed in the planeof said surface of the recess of said other plate.
 5. The combination ofclaim 1, said last-mentioned means comprising a plate disposed in arecess in said one surface of said inner slot, and spring means in saidrail to press said plate against said pins or shanks.
 6. The combinationof claim 2, and means disposed at one surface of said longitudinallyextendiNg inner slot to exert resilient contact pressure on drive pinsor on shanks of drive-in nails passing through said inner slot of saidrail.
 7. The combination of claim 3, and means disposed at one surfaceof said longitudinally extending inner slot to exert resilient contactpressure on drive pins or on shanks of drive-in nails passing throughsaid inner slot of said rail.
 8. Apparatus to drive fastening means suchas staples, nails, pins or the like, comprising a drive plungerstructural means to define a guiding channel for said fastening meansand for said plunger, and a magazine to accommodate the fastening means,said magazine comprising a guide rail leading to said channel forguiding fastening means on said rail, to said channel, spring-biasedpusher means on said rail to urge fastening means on the rail in adirection toward the said guiding channel, said guide rail being formedwith a longitudinally extending inner slot intermediate the sides of therail, for the accommodation of shanks of nails and/or pins adapted to beurged toward said channel by said pusher means, said guide channelcomprising a first recess on one side of the channel, of a widthcorresponding to the width of the plunger and extending in the drivedirection of the plunger, and a second recess on the other side of thechannel of a width less than the width of said plunger and centered withrespect to said first recess and extending therefrom, to accommodateheads of nails to be driven.
 9. The combination of claim 8, said channelfurther comprising a groove, centered with respect to said secondrecess, to guide pins to be driven.